The Eastern Federation of Mineralogical Societies (EFLMS) Wildacres Workshop takes place annually at a very unique gathering place called Wildacres Retreat in North Carolina, near Spruce Pine and Little Switzerland, about an hour north of Asheville. The Wildacres Retreat sits hidden away amongst tall trees on top of Pompey’s Knob at the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains at 3,300 feet elevation.
The 2025 EFLMS Wildacres Workshop will be held May 12th through the 18th. The week starts Monday afternoon with dinner, and finishes Sunday morning after breakfast. The first EFLMS Wildacres workshop was held in 1973, over 50 years of continuous excellent education. The cost for the week of classes, room, and three full meals per day, this year, at $485 is unmatched. A small additional fee is paid to class’s instructors for materials.
During the week, an invited Speaker-in-Residence gives six lecture presentations. The EFMLS is the only Federation that offers this extra level of knowledge, experience, and opportunity for participants to meet and spend the week with world-celebrated people of the gem trade and scientific world. The 2025 Speaker-in-Residence will be Martin D. Fuller, a highly respected gemologist and renowned appraiser in the trade, who will share his passion for gems and jewelry. His presentations will reflect his enormous gem and jewelry knowledge and will be jam-packed with photos and stories of famous jewelry from clients and museums, including the Hope Diamond and Madeleine Albright’s extensive pin collection, which he helped appraise.
The Wildacres experience is a fabulous one. The setting is incredible, the views are breathtaking, the serenity is inspiring, classes and instructors are top notch, and the camaraderie is mind-blowing. As the new Wildacres Committee Chairman, I know you will leave the session fulfilled and inspired.
The only requirement is that you have to be a member of any gem and mineral society across the country affiliated with the American Federation of Mineralogical Societies (AFMS). For information and registration please visit www.efmls.org/wildacres/.